My MIL drove the 5 hours down. I had to labor on my own for a while because I had our only car at the hospital after going in for a routine appointment and ending up being induced. If she couldn't make it our back up plan was care.com. Didn't know anyone on the area at the time.

Don't plan. It will fall into place. Plan a you want and it can just easily fall apart.

We planned, stressed, panicked... And both times- did something completely different with our son(s)

The second time I knew I was in labor. And just called a sitter. No stress. We paid her $80 done. First time, we planned several friends, then back ups. But know what? At 3am- I needed to drop him FAsT. So he went with my husbands co-workers family (he was 18montjd and had a blast!!! And he hated strangers.)

well my mom and brother took care of my DS when DS#2 was being born. it was a quick 4 hr labor and he was asleep the whole time. but when ds #2 was born we had to take care of both of them in the hospital. we had no one to look after Ds when we were at the hospital, that was hard!!
*same thing happened with our third. i had to take care of our DD in the hospital i had no help. ugh!

When my second was born, my mom took off a couple days to watch my daughter, then 15 months. When newborn son was readmitted a few days after birth, I roomed in, and since it was the weekend my mom watched her again.

When number three was born, my mom watched the older two the night I was admitted for induction, they were with her the whole next day, met baby that afternoon, stayed with her the second night, and she took them to my grandmother's the next morning before work. My husband got them that evening, took them back the next morning to help get me and baby home, then picked them back up.